Last.fm does a Spotify, goes premium for mobile devices
Last.fm has announced that it will no longer be available for free for the majority of mobile and streaming devices.The UK-based music outfit has decided to take the Spotify stance for mobile phones and entertainment devices and start charging a subscription for the app.
Unless you use a Windows Phone 7 handset or an Xbox to stream the app, then you will have to sign up as a subscriber to continue using the service.
This means that if you use Last.fm through a Sonos, Squeezebox, iOS and Android devices then you will have to start paying.
Denon, Teufel and Roberts devices are also affected.
Will cost a coffee
"We're committed to building Last.fm into a bigger service that gives listeners the best music discovery experience anywhere while financially supporting and promoting the artists who make the music we love," said Matthew Hawn of Last.fm about the changes.
"You'll see that this change brings us in line with other music services that already charge you to listen to music on mobile devices.
"For the cost of a fancy coffee, a Last.fm monthly subscription allows you to listen to radio across all platforms, on all your devices, and without commercial interruptions."
Scrobbling, music and event recommendations, social networking and community forums won't be affected with the subscription change, but Last.fm's main radio component will only be available on mobile devices to subscribers.
Currently a subscription costs a not to shabby £3 a month, with listening to the service on a computer staying completely free.
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Sony Ericsson Xperia Play en route to O2
By way of a tweet, O2 has confirmed that the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play will be coming to its bubbly network.Vodafone has also confirmed to TechRadar that it will be ranging the gaming handset in the UK.
The handset was only officially confirmed over the weekend and is set to get its official debut at Mobile World Congress on 13 February.
Play dot com
We don't let silly things like official announcements get in the way though, having already had a sneaky bit of hands on fun with the Xperia Play.
With a slide-out gaming pad it's not the slimmest handset in the world, but it does come with a 4-inch touchscreen and Android 2.3.
Despite Vodafone and O2 both promising the handset to us Brits, we're still awaiting news of a UK release date and UK pricing - hopefully Sony Ericsson will reveal both on 13 February.
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The future of search: Google will 'just know' says Schmidt
Google has hinted at the future of internet search, saying that in the future instead of typing in a search term, it will "just know". Speaking to the Telegraph at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Google's Executive Chairman and ex-CEO Eric Schmidt said that search will evolve to use human actions to inform results.
"We still think of search as something you type. Perhaps a decade from now, you will think, well, that was interesting, I used to type but now it just knows," he said.
Omnipotent Google
"How does it know? Well, on mobiles we know where you are, down to the nearest foot. You've chosen to log in, with your permission, and it knows where you are and it can provide a personalised service," he continued.
"Technically, with your permission, we know where you are, we know your history, we can do data extraction and look at what it tells us."
"With your permission" being a recurring refrain, Google is obviously keen to make it clear that all this data mining is being done on the up and up.
Pipe dream?
While it's not exactly clear how your location, social interactions and behaviour could tell Google exactly what you want to search for at any given time, a kind of mind-reading service could be the way that Google is heading.
Well, we say mind-reading, it would be more like informed guessing at what you might want or need, in much the same way that predictive text guesses at what you're typing based on your first couple of letters and things you've typed before.
"In 50 years it is reasonable to assume in technology that all of these distinctions between computers and cloud [remote data storage] will have gone away.
"There will be a ubiquitous computational capability that is just so free and so amazing that people will assume that it is an assistant. It knows who you are, it knows what you do, it makes suggestions, it intuits things for you," Schmidt added.
While the intuitive system could conceivably work in many situations, it's unlikely that Google can do away with text input altogether; the human brain is too random and the internet too brilliantly vast.
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In Depth: iOS 5: 12 things Apple needs to fix
While flawed, AirPlay and AirPrint in iOS 4.2 showed Apple continues to innovate regarding features for its mobile operating system.However, with competing mobile systems rapidly evolving, Apple can't afford to sit still.
And while it's great to see big new features arrive, there are plenty of other things we dearly hope Apple sees fit to fix for iOS 5. Here are the 12 fixes we most want to see…
1. Wireless sync
They might be mobile, but iOS devices need wires to connect them to a computer whenever you want to sync newly bought apps and other media. An over-the-air option would be useful. Also, Apple encourages consumers to buy multiple devices, but cross-device data sync (for apps and games) is almost non-existent.
2. Notifications system
The current iOS notifications system is intrusive and sub-optimal. Something more akin to the call bar would be more suitable for notifications, and Apple should take a cue from Boxcar and provide a single location for exploring recent notifications.
3. Configurable lock screen
Most of the competition is making a big deal about the immediacy of information, and yet the iOS lock screen is a configurable photo, the time and the date. A few optional extras - new emails, social network notifications, missed calls, even the weather forecast - would make all the difference.
4. Single-app back-up
Games for iOS are growing, and device capacity isn't keeping pace. If you suddenly need the space your latest 1GB blockbusters are hogging, you must delete them and their data. Apple should provide the means to optionally reinstate data when you reinstall an app - at least when doing so from iTunes.
5. Better folders
Folders are fine, but they're limited and fiddly. Since Apple's happy with you scrolling panes in apps, there's no reason why you shouldn't be able to store more apps in a folder, scrolling them vertically as necessary.
6. More multitasking options
The multitasking bar and the few widgets accessible when you swipe it are handy, but we'd like more options: quick access to a brightness slider on iPad; single-tap toggle of airplane mode on all devices; and a 'quit all' option for running processes. Some kind of quick app-switching gesture would also be lovely (much like the one now confirmed removed from iOS 4.3, in fact).
MORE OPTIONS: The multitasking bar is useful, but it could offer power users fast access to far more settings
7. Superior data sharing
There's something to be said for sandboxing apps (in it enhancing stability), but developers increasingly grumble that isolation stops data being easily shared, meaning small, focussed apps often balloon to deal with this shortcoming. Apple in part addressed this by enabling some apps to open certain file formats in specific other apps, but this is currently limited and limiting.
8. Installed apps list
Everything was simple when you had 20 apps, but now you've hundreds installed, you forget what you've got available. We'd like to see an additional swipe past Spotlight that presents an alphabetical list of apps that can be filtered by typing characters (as opposed to a list gradually being populated as you type, which is only useful if you know what you're looking for).
9. Default apps toggle
Sure, you can dump Apple's default apps into a folder, but you shouldn't have to. We get why Apple won't let you delete default apps (otherwise there'd be people freaking out when they 'lost' Safari), but power users should be able to at least hide them via options in the Settings app.
HIDE AWAY: You can bung default apps in a folder, but you should be able to hide them entirely
10. Editable dictionary and auto-correct
To be fair, the iOS auto-correct is pretty smart and it's good for assisting typing on a virtual keyboard, but as blog Damn You, Auto Correct shows, it regularly messes up. If Apple enabled you to edit the dictionary and set custom auto-corrects, these problems would disappear.
11. App Store multitasking
Apple wants you to buy apps, but, seemingly, only one at a time - and slowly. We're not sure why the App Store kicks you out to a home screen every time you download something, but we wish it wouldn't.
12. Guest mode
We'll never see multiple user accounts on iOS devices. However, we hope Apple will soon provide some kind of 'guest' mode, so someone can mess about with a device without wrecking your settings (although the recently added restrictions options in the Settings app are a decent start).
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Nokia E7 starts shipping today
Nokia has announced that its long-awaited Nokia E7 business handset has finally started shipping. UK fans will have a little longer to wait, however, with the handset not yet available to buy on our fair isles.
Having been revealed at Nokia World back in September, the handset has been a long time coming but will be heading to Vodafone, hopefully any day now.
N8-alike
The slim Symbian^3 handset looks a lot like an N8 (with a larger screen and a lower-spec camera), but hidden beneath the OLED touchscreen is a slide-out QWERTY keyboard.
Although no official UK release date has been given, UK pricing should be around £420 (€495).
To whet your appetite while awaiting that UK release date, feel free to peruse our hands on Nokia E7 review at your leisure.
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Nokia E6 pictures surface just in time for MWC
Photos of Nokia's as-yet unannounced Nokia E6-00 have made their way on to the internet, suggesting that the not-very-exciting handset may form the crux of the company's Mobile World Congress announcements. It's not setting our hearts aflame with excitement, looking very much like the Nokia E71 and most of the rest of the E-series candybar handsets.
Specs relating to the business handset leaked last month, with a 640 x 480 VGA screen, Symbian^3 and HSPA on offer.
Shattered touchscreen dreams?
Rumours had also suggested the E6 would offer a nice big touchscreen. But, while the photos neither confirm nor deny the presence of a touchscreen on the QWERTY candybar, the screen size and masses of space dedicated to the navigational trackpad suggest it does not.
We're not at all sure about the enormous band of wasted space under the QWERTY; could this be some kind of gestural input bar? Doubtful.
If this is all Nokia has for us at Mobile World Congress, we're going to be seriously disappointed. Let's just hope the curtain comes up on that MeeGo superphone instead.
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Hands on: Canon EOS 1100D review
In look and feel the new Canon EOS 1100D sits halfway between the EOS 1000D that it replaces and the EOS 550D above it in the Canon SLR line-up.The 1100D's body surface has a smooth silky feel rather like the 1000D's and there are no textured coatings like the 550D's. Instead of the regular circular buttons of the 1000D, the 1100D has the crazy-paving style buttons of the 550 and they fit around the contours of the camera's body.
Naturally, the EOS 1100D doesn't have quite the same durable feel as Canon's higher-end SLRs, but the sample I used didn't have any loose joints and there was no creaking or squeaking when I gripped the camera firmly.
Canon 1100D specifications
Obviously as budget SLR there's a limit to how much technology Canon can pack into the EOS 1100D, but it has enough to make it seem like a worthwhile replacement for the 1000D.
The 2 million pixel boost in resolution is just enough to be interesting and the switch to a DIGIC 4 engine allows 14-bit processing, which should ensure better quality images.
Read more on PhotoRadar: Hands on: Canon EOS 1100D review
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Hands on: Canon EOS 600D review
With all the internet chatter anticipating upgrades to the EOS 1000D, EOS-1Ds Mark III and even the EOS 5D Mark II, Canon's announcement of the EOS 600D is likely to come as a surprise to many.By now you've probably read the Canon 600D price and specs, and you've still two months to digest it all before the Canon 600D release date in early April.
Our pals on PhotoRadar have already had a play around with this latest Canon camera, which sits above the EOS 550D in the Canon family. Our full Canon 600D review is still to come, but in the meantime read PR's first impressions of Canon's new release for aspiring photographers...
600D first-look
In keeping with recent Canon SLR introductions, the 600D has an 18 million-pixel sensor which is very similar to the ones in the EOS 550D, EOS 60D (read our Canon 60D review) and EOS 7D, but it's not identical.
Canon UK's David Parry wasn't able to tell me exactly what the difference is, but was prepared to speculate that there's something unique about the low-pass filter. The important thing is that we can expect the image quality to be of a similar standard to the EOS 7D's.
As you'd expect, the Canon EOS 600D feels a little tougher than the Canon 1100D and has textured pads to help provide a bit more grip. According to David Parry, Canon will release the EOS 600D to provide a more advanced, feature-rich SLR for photographers who like the EOS 550D handling and design...
Read more on PhotoRadar: Hands on: Canon EOS 600D review
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Buying Guide: Best antivirus 2011: 10 programs on test
Malware, hackers, spam, identity thieves and more – which antivirus package should you invest in to prevent them playing havoc with your life? We test 10 of the best antivirus apps availableAntivirus isn't something you can get away without any more, and if you think you can't be infected, chances are there's a virus writer somewhere ready and willing to prove you wrong. You probably won't even know about it when it happens.
In the old days, malware tended to make a big song and dance about its presence, but the rules have changed. Now written with an eye towards online crime and cold hard cash, the average virus has learned to stay low and spread via almost any vector. The wrong website. A lost USB stick. A Facebook message.
You never know where they could strike, and even if you're up to speed on what they're doing now, sooner or later they'll find a new trick.
For these antivirus reviews, we've taken 10 of the best programs around and put them through their paces, not just to see how good they are at stomping viruses, but how much of your valuable resources they soak up.
We've all banished an antivirus tool for slowing things down or getting too obnoxious at some point – a modern tool should be expected to keep quiet until it has something important to say, and definitely not get in the way of the applications you're using or the games you want to play.
Finally, while most of these versions are available as suites, it's primarily their antivirus capabilities that we're looking at here. Each offers multiple versions at different price points, typically a pure antivirus tool and an Internet Security Suite edition that bolts on a firewall and often parental controls.
There's frequently a third edition too, focusing on features like backup and data security. The core engines are always the same, however, so don't feel you're missing out on anything if you don't need them.
Microsoft Security Essentials
Price: Free (Unlimited PCs)
Info: www.microsoft.com
You need antivirus, but do you need to pay for antivirus? There are plenty of free tools out there to choose from, including variants of many packages reviewed here (although we're looking at the commercial editions in the interests of fairness, the actual scanning engines are usually similar, if not identical), but Microsoft's is one of the few that's entirely free.
There are no upgrades on offer, no souped-up edition to try and upsell you to, and no irritating pop-ups to remind you that it's there. This makes it something of a stripped-down package – there's no firewall, not many options, no web filtering and no gaming mode.
It has all the basics though, including scheduled scans and real-time threat detection, the ability to mark certain files as safe and automatic scanning of all files you download from the internet.
On our test PC, it was by far the slowest antivirus package, taking 25 minutes for its first scan and 12 on a subsequent run, but clawed some time back when it came to reboots, barely affecting how long it took Windows to start up in the morning. It also had one of the lowest CPU utilisation scores on test, making it a good one to have running in the background.
As far as actual scanning goes, we had no complaints. Like most of the tools on test, it was a clean sweep, picking up all the malware on the PC and not falling for any of the false positives. It may be a free tool, but Microsoft has a vested interest in keeping Windows virus-free.
If all you want is a scanner and not any fancy features, it's more than up to the job of sitting in the background and protecting your PC, out of sight and out of mind.
Rating: 4/5
Webroot Internet Security Complete
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.webroot.com
Webroot performed reasonably well across the board. It missed one virus from our loadout, but that's only noticeable because the majority caught them all. Every package will have its blind spots – viruses that it didn't quite update in time to catch and the one that gets away – so a single miss is nothing to be ashamed of.
It earned a perfect score on false positives however, and proved one of the least system-intensive programs of the lot – it adds barely 20 seconds extra on bootup, has a tiny average memory footprint, and a very respectable scan time and average CPU load.
It was one of the slower programs in the test during the initial scan, but the time drops considerably on subsequent checks. There's a dedicated gaming mode, with the handy option to choose how long it stays on. Beyond that, there aren't many options to play with, and not much stood out.
The Internet Security Complete Pack takes the standard set of antivirus and firewall features and bolts on some handy extras, including protecting your passwords, providing secure form-filling and hanging onto your credit card details.
You also get some free web space, the amount depending on the version – 10GB in the Complete Edition, 2GB in Security Essentials – for file-sharing and backup, which is a handy throw-in, especially because it allows for automatic syncing. Put any files you need to keep into a special Magic Briefcase folder, and they'll be accessible on any PC that has Internet Security Complete on it.
This should really be a free downloadable app though to beat DropBox and friends.
Rating: 3/5
McAfee Internet Security 2011
Price: £40 (one PC)
Info: www.mcafee.com
The antivirus world's other heavy hitter doesn't put in quite as good a performance as this year's Norton, but still serves up a very respectable performance across the board.
It suffered from the one of the longest boot-up times and the absolute highest CPU load during scans, but compensated by being by far the least memory-hungry program on test. You might not want to play games while it's running – and there's no gaming mode provided – but for most apps it'll be just fine.
In other areas, Internet Security proved a mid-level package. Its initial scan took a lengthy 17 minutes, which dropped down to just four minutes on a subsequent runthrough – roughly the same as Norton.
It caught 100 per cent of the malware on our test system without falling prey to any false positives, and on a purely aesthetic level, it features a much better interface that makes it easy to access exactly the features you want.
As with all major internet security suites, a capable software firewall is built in, and can be activated and then generally ignored until it spots something you should know about.
Bonus features on offer here include parental controls, file shredding, antispam and a gigabyte of free space (the Norton equivalent is only available in the 360 edition).
The upgraded version, Total Protection, offers all these features, plus an encrypted vault to store files, home network defense and a more advanced version of McAfee's SiteAdvisor for spotting bad links. For most however, Internet Security will be all you need, and while it may not have come out the winner this year, it remains a strong performer.
AVG Internet Security 2011
Price: £38 (one PC)
Info: www.avg.com
AVG is best known for its free antivirus, but this commercial version offers more than a few reasons to upgrade, including identity protection and a built-in firewall.
Still, install it and you could be forgiven for thinking it's still trying to upsell you on a later version, because it's more than a little eager to make sure you know everything it's doing. It adds a Gadget to the Windows Sidebar, its firewall is very noticeable, and it can feel like the smart kid at the front of the class going "Sir! Sir! I know, sir!"
Still, it performs well enough for a pat on the head. In tests, it was easily the fastest of the tools here on first scan, and an excellent performer on subsequent scans. It demands fairly high CPU usage, but barely affected rebooting times at all.
On the all-important virus test, it was a clean sweep for both actual malware and false-positives. The only real weaknesses are the Link Scanner, which protects you from malicious sites and sending out dodgy links via Facebook, but only in internet Explorer and Firefox, and it's not always clear exactly what its options will do for you – the Identity Protection component being particularly vague.
AVG is a strong contender, although for personal use, it must be noted that if it's only the antivirus side of the package that you're interested in, you can still download it for free. (For professional/corporate use, you need to pay up for the full package.)
The main things you miss out on if you opt for the free version are the firewall, anti-spam (which you probably won't use since it's clientside only), IM conversation scanning, and the Identity Protection component.
Rating: 4/5
Norton Internet Security 2011
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.symantec.com
Like McAfee, Norton is one of the kings of the antivirus world and this latest version of its Internet Security suite doesn't let the side down at all.
Where previous versions could be annoyingly 'in your face', the 2011 suite feels more quietly confident, from its new interface showing current trouble hotspots around the world to the easy-to-use tools it provides for scanning and cleaning.
In tests, Norton's antivirus put on one of the best performances. It had no difficulty with the viruses we sent it to find and didn't fall for any of the false positives we set up for it. Norton has long had a reputation for being a heavy package, but this time out, it's a good lodger.
A very long initial scan soon gave way to one of the fastest second scans, with a solid CPU and memory footprint.
Bonus features on top of the core antivirus scanning in the Internet Security 2011 edition include parental controls, firewalling and tools for identity theft protection. The next level up, Norton 360, adds online backup/PC tuning, although nothing extra that you really need for online security.
One complaint we do have, however, is that while Symantec offers a 30-day trial of Norton products, there's a bit of a catch – they're what the company calls 'opt-out demos'. In short, you have to give it your credit card number and if you don't actively cancel before the end of your trial period, you'll automatically be billed for a whole year's worth of protection.
Hopefully this doesn't catch on with other companies, because it's not the friendliest way of road-testing alternative suites.
Rating: 4/5
VIPRE Antivirus Premium
Price: £50 (unlimited PCs)
Info: www.vipre.com
VIPRE offers a few interesting features, one of which is its 'lifetime' subscription option. Unfortunately this costs £60, and isn't a great deal considering the all-home licence you get in the regular edition. Also, the 'lifetime' is that of your PC, not yourself.
Since you're going to upgrade and almost certainly have more than one machine around, in most cases you're going to be better off with the regular yearly subscription, spread out between your computers.
In tests, it proved to be a mid-range performer. It was one of the worst tools for slowing down boot-times, although not quite the slowest, and one of the slowest at actually scanning the drive after its first look around. Its CPU utilisation is reasonable though, and while there's no dedicated gaming mode, it never got in the way of actually playing games.
It may take time to do its job, but you probably won't be inconvenienced while it does it in the background. Its performance against our test system was a clean sweep, catching all of the viruses put in front of it, and not falling for any of the false positives hiding among them.
In testing, no major problems reared their heads at all, save that it can be very chatty – always keeping you in the loop, whether you have a reason to care or not.
VIPRE Antivirus is available in two versions – Premium and regular. The main differences are that only the Premium edition features a firewall and intrusion prevention, with a few other features thrown in – notably ad blocking, web filtering. The antivirus component itself appear to be the same decent performer.
Rating: 3/5
PC Tools Internet Security 2011
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.pctools.com
The first thing that stood out about PC Tools was that it had by far the biggest effect on our test machine's boot times, increasing them by a good half a minute. In three different tests, it spiked a 38-second boot time to a whopping 2:10, 1:49 and 1:40 – quite a difference.
Luckily, that was the only major negative we encountered while using it. Its memory usage and CPU load were average, and its actual scanning was surprisingly fast. The first long initial scan took around half an hour, but dropped down to a mere 46 seconds for its follow-up run.
As with most tools here, it caught everything that was waiting for it on the drive, and didn't clock up any false positives against its record while doing so.
Its feature set is a strong one, with one of the more reactive firewalls we saw in these products immediately kicking in. Unlike many, there are a few handy shortcuts you can use, including telling it what kind of network you're on, and having the firewall settings auto-configured to match – very handy if you just want to get started.
In a similar vein, a gaming mode is both present and automated, kicking in whenever you go into full-screen mode. Additional web security filters include spam filtering for Outlook and Thunderbird via toolbars, and plenty of online protection tools to watch out for any potentially dodgy websites and dangerous downloads.
It's one of the cheaper antivirus solutions out there as well, at only £40 for a three-user license per year. It's a pity about that initial sloth, but there's little to complain about elsewhere in this strong internet security suite.
Rating: 3/5
Kaspersky Pure
Price: £50 (one PC)
Info: www.kaspersky.com
Kaspersky currently offers three different security products, in escalating level of price: regular Kaspersky Antivirus, Kaspersky Internet Security and this one, Kaspersky Pure. Both Antivirus and Pure are excellent performers, and caught all the malware in our test sweep without falling prey to any traps.
The regular Antivirus proved marginally faster, while soaking up equally marginal extra system resources, and is a little cheaper, but Pure offers a few extra toys to play with. Whichever version you look at, it's going to be an excellent product.
Internet Security bolts on extra parental controls and tune-up utilities. Pure adds backup to the mix and beefs up the firewall component, with more emphasis on the security of your home network. The most interesting feature Kaspersky Internet Security/ Pure includes is the ability to run applications in a sandbox, without you having to go to the trouble of setting up dedicated virtual machines.
Any app you have installed can be locked away in one, identified by a radioactive green glow around its window. A shared folder handles any data-swapping. You still shouldn't use this to test programs you know are dodgy – or run them at all – but it's a good extra to have when browsing the web or trying out new applications.
Kaspersky's protection is a strong offering across the board, with a more informative control panel than most, but one that provides easy configuration options. It's a little more power for only small amount extra, but you won't be disappointed with the other editions if you don't need the extras.
Rating: 4/5
BitDefender Total Security 2011
Price: £50 (one PC)
Info: www.bitdefender.com
BitDefender Total Security is another very solid product, with no particular specialities that push it above the herd, but no major weaknesses either. It caught all the malware, it didn't fall for any traps, and it did it very effectively indeed, with quick scans and reasonable CPU and memory loads.
It has a dedicated gaming mode for keeping resources under control, and is one of the few products that does a proper scan of your PC before even installing, just to make sure it's safe.
The interface is somewhat unusual, initially looking like there aren't many features, before revealing that they're tucked away to help prioritise the ones that you actually use. Don't need laptop mode? Flick a switch and it'll never be shown again. Not a gamer? Say goodbye to the gaming mode.
Alternatively, if you want everything up front, you can just as easily switch into a more advanced user mode mode with all the options. One excellent touch is that before you use the software, it offers to actually guide you through, with one tutorial for existing BitDefender users and another for complete newcomers.
In terms of features, it's the standard loadout: firewall, parental controls, and a few extras for tuning up your PC and backing up files. The slightly cut down Internet Security 2011 edition loses the last couple of features, which is fine if you already have space to store your things, and costs slightly less.
There's also a pure antivirus edition, which is one of the cheaper on the market. This misses out on the firewall and parental controls, but otherwise still offers everything you could need to stop malware in its tracks.
Rating: 3/5
Titanium Internet Security 2011
Price: £40 (one PC)
Info: http://uk.trendmicro.com
Trend Micro's offering was by far the worst at picking up viruses in this year's test, failing to fix a dismal 23 per cent of the viruses planted on our test PC compared to most of the others' 100 per cent scores and Webroot's only slightly shaky 97.1.
In its favour, it didn't throw up any false positives, but nor did any of the other tools. We might just have caught it on a bad day, but we can't say it was a great start for this package. It's a cloud-based virus scanner however, so new emerging threats should be protected against very quickly.
In terms of raw performance, there's little to praise except for the fact that boot-up time after installing Trend was almost identical to before it, with a variance of just six seconds – the only other package even close to that was Microsoft itself, at 10 seconds.
In scanning, it used fewer resources than most, but not dramatically so. It took over 10 minutes to complete its secondary scan, where most – although not all – of its competitors ripped right through our test rig. Still, it wasn't the slowest performer by any means, beating both VIPRE and Microsoft by a good couple of minutes.
As far as extra features go, you get the standard firewall, a client-side spam blocker, plus some very handy extras: built in parental controls that both block kids from naughty sites and serve up reports, and a Data Theft Prevention tool that takes in your most important passwords and personal details and watches out for them slipping into the wrong hands.
All good stuff, let down by its initial performance. Hopefully next year it'll be better prepared.
Rating: 2/5
Best antivirus: verdict
The most surprising thing about this antivirus test is how little difference there is between most security suites at the moment. If you buy antivirus, you'll get that. Anything with 'Security' in the name is going to double that up with a firewall.All are incredibly easy to use, and the majority scored a clean sweep in our tests. That makes it harder to recommend individual packages, but the good news is that as long as you stick with the known names, you're unlikely to buy a dud.
Whether it's a bonus feature you like, or simply added performance you crave, you can purchase in confidence. Just make sure you invest in one of them, because the criminals writing viruses will always have another trick up their sleeves…
Editor's choice: Norton Internet Security 2011
It's a close fight, but Norton's excellent performance and revamped interface make it our pick of this year's crop. It's easy enough for anyone to use, but with lots of excellent bonus features to dip into if you need a bit more power.
Unsurprisingly catching everything we threw at it, it's a security suite you can be completely comfortable using as your digital guard-dog.
Performance award: Kaspersky Pure
With excellent scanning and a grab bag of genuinely useful security extras, it's hard to fault Kaspersky's high-end suite. You can get slightly faster and more system-friendly tools if you want everything more automated, although Pure won't give you trouble, but this is the one to go with if you want to squeeze as much power out of your choice of protection as possible.
Value award: Microsoft Security Essentials
You can't get better value than free, and Microsoft Security Essentials is more than good enough - as long as you know what you're doing. You may miss a few of the extra features, and have to sort out your firewall separately, but it'll keep you safe from most of the threats you're likely to download without the obnoxious extras. No licenses, no adverts, just free protection.
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Buying Guide: Best antivirus: 10 programs on test
Malware, hackers, spam, identity thieves and more – which antivirus package should you invest in to prevent them playing havoc with your life? We test 10 of the best antivirus apps availableAntivirus isn't something you can get away without any more, and if you think you can't be infected, chances are there's a virus writer somewhere ready and willing to prove you wrong. You probably won't even know about it when it happens.
In the old days, malware tended to make a big song and dance about its presence, but the rules have changed. Now written with an eye towards online crime and cold hard cash, the average virus has learned to stay low and spread via almost any vector. The wrong website. A lost USB stick. A Facebook message.
You never know where they could strike, and even if you're up to speed on what they're doing now, sooner or later they'll find a new trick.
For these antivirus reviews, we've taken 10 of the best programs around and put them through their paces, not just to see how good they are at stomping viruses, but how much of your valuable resources they soak up.
We've all banished an antivirus tool for slowing things down or getting too obnoxious at some point – a modern tool should be expected to keep quiet until it has something important to say, and definitely not get in the way of the applications you're using or the games you want to play.
Finally, while most of these versions are available as suites, it's primarily their antivirus capabilities that we're looking at here. Each offers multiple versions at different price points, typically a pure antivirus tool and an Internet Security Suite edition that bolts on a firewall and often parental controls.
There's frequently a third edition too, focusing on features like backup and data security. The core engines are always the same, however, so don't feel you're missing out on anything if you don't need them.
Microsoft Security Essentials
Price: Free (Unlimited PCs)
Info: www.microsoft.com
You need antivirus, but do you need to pay for antivirus? There are plenty of free tools out there to choose from, including variants of many packages reviewed here (although we're looking at the commercial editions in the interests of fairness, the actual scanning engines are usually similar, if not identical), but Microsoft's is one of the few that's entirely free.
There are no upgrades on offer, no souped-up edition to try and upsell you to, and no irritating pop-ups to remind you that it's there. This makes it something of a stripped-down package – there's no firewall, not many options, no web filtering and no gaming mode.
It has all the basics though, including scheduled scans and real-time threat detection, the ability to mark certain files as safe and automatic scanning of all files you download from the internet.
On our test PC, it was by far the slowest antivirus package, taking 25 minutes for its first scan and 12 on a subsequent run, but clawed some time back when it came to reboots, barely affecting how long it took Windows to start up in the morning. It also had one of the lowest CPU utilisation scores on test, making it a good one to have running in the background.
As far as actual scanning goes, we had no complaints. Like most of the tools on test, it was a clean sweep, picking up all the malware on the PC and not falling for any of the false positives. It may be a free tool, but Microsoft has a vested interest in keeping Windows virus-free.
If all you want is a scanner and not any fancy features, it's more than up to the job of sitting in the background and protecting your PC, out of sight and out of mind.
Rating: 4/5
Webroot Internet Security Complete
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.webroot.com
Webroot performed reasonably well across the board. It missed one virus from our loadout, but that's only noticeable because the majority caught them all. Every package will have its blind spots – viruses that it didn't quite update in time to catch and the one that gets away – so a single miss is nothing to be ashamed of.
It earned a perfect score on false positives however, and proved one of the least system-intensive programs of the lot – it adds barely 20 seconds extra on bootup, has a tiny average memory footprint, and a very respectable scan time and average CPU load.
It was one of the slower programs in the test during the initial scan, but the time drops considerably on subsequent checks. There's a dedicated gaming mode, with the handy option to choose how long it stays on. Beyond that, there aren't many options to play with, and not much stood out.
The Internet Security Complete Pack takes the standard set of antivirus and firewall features and bolts on some handy extras, including protecting your passwords, providing secure form-filling and hanging onto your credit card details.
You also get some free web space, the amount depending on the version – 10GB in the Complete Edition, 2GB in Security Essentials – for file-sharing and backup, which is a handy throw-in, especially because it allows for automatic syncing. Put any files you need to keep into a special Magic Briefcase folder, and they'll be accessible on any PC that has Internet Security Complete on it.
This should really be a free downloadable app though to beat DropBox and friends.
Rating: 3/5
McAfee Internet Security 2011
Price: £40 (one PC)
Info: www.mcafee.com
The antivirus world's other heavy hitter doesn't put in quite as good a performance as this year's Norton, but still serves up a very respectable performance across the board.
It suffered from the one of the longest boot-up times and the absolute highest CPU load during scans, but compensated by being by far the least memory-hungry program on test. You might not want to play games while it's running – and there's no gaming mode provided – but for most apps it'll be just fine.
In other areas, Internet Security proved a mid-level package. Its initial scan took a lengthy 17 minutes, which dropped down to just four minutes on a subsequent runthrough – roughly the same as Norton.
It caught 100 per cent of the malware on our test system without falling prey to any false positives, and on a purely aesthetic level, it features a much better interface that makes it easy to access exactly the features you want.
As with all major internet security suites, a capable software firewall is built in, and can be activated and then generally ignored until it spots something you should know about.
Bonus features on offer here include parental controls, file shredding, antispam and a gigabyte of free space (the Norton equivalent is only available in the 360 edition).
The upgraded version, Total Protection, offers all these features, plus an encrypted vault to store files, home network defense and a more advanced version of McAfee's SiteAdvisor for spotting bad links. For most however, Internet Security will be all you need, and while it may not have come out the winner this year, it remains a strong performer.
AVG Internet Security 2011
Price: £38 (one PC)
Info: www.avg.com
AVG is best known for its free antivirus, but this commercial version offers more than a few reasons to upgrade, including identity protection and a built-in firewall.
Still, install it and you could be forgiven for thinking it's still trying to upsell you on a later version, because it's more than a little eager to make sure you know everything it's doing. It adds a Gadget to the Windows Sidebar, its firewall is very noticeable, and it can feel like the smart kid at the front of the class going "Sir! Sir! I know, sir!"
Still, it performs well enough for a pat on the head. In tests, it was easily the fastest of the tools here on first scan, and an excellent performer on subsequent scans. It demands fairly high CPU usage, but barely affected rebooting times at all.
On the all-important virus test, it was a clean sweep for both actual malware and false-positives. The only real weaknesses are the Link Scanner, which protects you from malicious sites and sending out dodgy links via Facebook, but only in internet Explorer and Firefox, and it's not always clear exactly what its options will do for you – the Identity Protection component being particularly vague.
AVG is a strong contender, although for personal use, it must be noted that if it's only the antivirus side of the package that you're interested in, you can still download it for free. (For professional/corporate use, you need to pay up for the full package.)
The main things you miss out on if you opt for the free version are the firewall, anti-spam (which you probably won't use since it's clientside only), IM conversation scanning, and the Identity Protection component.
Rating: 4/5
Norton Internet Security 2011
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.symantec.com
Like McAfee, Norton is one of the kings of the antivirus world and this latest version of its Internet Security suite doesn't let the side down at all.
Where previous versions could be annoyingly 'in your face', the 2011 suite feels more quietly confident, from its new interface showing current trouble hotspots around the world to the easy-to-use tools it provides for scanning and cleaning.
In tests, Norton's antivirus put on one of the best performances. It had no difficulty with the viruses we sent it to find and didn't fall for any of the false positives we set up for it. Norton has long had a reputation for being a heavy package, but this time out, it's a good lodger.
A very long initial scan soon gave way to one of the fastest second scans, with a solid CPU and memory footprint.
Bonus features on top of the core antivirus scanning in the Internet Security 2011 edition include parental controls, firewalling and tools for identity theft protection. The next level up, Norton 360, adds online backup/PC tuning, although nothing extra that you really need for online security.
One complaint we do have, however, is that while Symantec offers a 30-day trial of Norton products, there's a bit of a catch – they're what the company calls 'opt-out demos'. In short, you have to give it your credit card number and if you don't actively cancel before the end of your trial period, you'll automatically be billed for a whole year's worth of protection.
Hopefully this doesn't catch on with other companies, because it's not the friendliest way of road-testing alternative suites.
Rating: 4/5
VIPRE Antivirus Premium
Price: £50 (unlimited PCs)
Info: www.vipre.com
VIPRE offers a few interesting features, one of which is its 'lifetime' subscription option. Unfortunately this costs £60, and isn't a great deal considering the all-home licence you get in the regular edition. Also, the 'lifetime' is that of your PC, not yourself.
Since you're going to upgrade and almost certainly have more than one machine around, in most cases you're going to be better off with the regular yearly subscription, spread out between your computers.
In tests, it proved to be a mid-range performer. It was one of the worst tools for slowing down boot-times, although not quite the slowest, and one of the slowest at actually scanning the drive after its first look around. Its CPU utilisation is reasonable though, and while there's no dedicated gaming mode, it never got in the way of actually playing games.
It may take time to do its job, but you probably won't be inconvenienced while it does it in the background. Its performance against our test system was a clean sweep, catching all of the viruses put in front of it, and not falling for any of the false positives hiding among them.
In testing, no major problems reared their heads at all, save that it can be very chatty – always keeping you in the loop, whether you have a reason to care or not.
VIPRE Antivirus is available in two versions – Premium and regular. The main differences are that only the Premium edition features a firewall and intrusion prevention, with a few other features thrown in – notably ad blocking, web filtering. The antivirus component itself appear to be the same decent performer.
Rating: 3/5
PC Tools Internet Security 2011
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.pctools.com
The first thing that stood out about PC Tools was that it had by far the biggest effect on our test machine's boot times, increasing them by a good half a minute. In three different tests, it spiked a 38-second boot time to a whopping 2:10, 1:49 and 1:40 – quite a difference.
Luckily, that was the only major negative we encountered while using it. Its memory usage and CPU load were average, and its actual scanning was surprisingly fast. The first long initial scan took around half an hour, but dropped down to a mere 46 seconds for its follow-up run.
As with most tools here, it caught everything that was waiting for it on the drive, and didn't clock up any false positives against its record while doing so.
Its feature set is a strong one, with one of the more reactive firewalls we saw in these products immediately kicking in. Unlike many, there are a few handy shortcuts you can use, including telling it what kind of network you're on, and having the firewall settings auto-configured to match – very handy if you just want to get started.
In a similar vein, a gaming mode is both present and automated, kicking in whenever you go into full-screen mode. Additional web security filters include spam filtering for Outlook and Thunderbird via toolbars, and plenty of online protection tools to watch out for any potentially dodgy websites and dangerous downloads.
It's one of the cheaper antivirus solutions out there as well, at only £40 for a three-user license per year. It's a pity about that initial sloth, but there's little to complain about elsewhere in this strong internet security suite.
Rating: 3/5
Kaspersky Pure
Price: £50 (one PC)
Info: www.kaspersky.com
Kaspersky currently offers three different security products, in escalating level of price: regular Kaspersky Antivirus, Kaspersky Internet Security and this one, Kaspersky Pure. Both Antivirus and Pure are excellent performers, and caught all the malware in our test sweep without falling prey to any traps.
The regular Antivirus proved marginally faster, while soaking up equally marginal extra system resources, and is a little cheaper, but Pure offers a few extra toys to play with. Whichever version you look at, it's going to be an excellent product.
Internet Security bolts on extra parental controls and tune-up utilities. Pure adds backup to the mix and beefs up the firewall component, with more emphasis on the security of your home network. The most interesting feature Kaspersky Internet Security/ Pure includes is the ability to run applications in a sandbox, without you having to go to the trouble of setting up dedicated virtual machines.
Any app you have installed can be locked away in one, identified by a radioactive green glow around its window. A shared folder handles any data-swapping. You still shouldn't use this to test programs you know are dodgy – or run them at all – but it's a good extra to have when browsing the web or trying out new applications.
Kaspersky's protection is a strong offering across the board, with a more informative control panel than most, but one that provides easy configuration options. It's a little more power for only small amount extra, but you won't be disappointed with the other editions if you don't need the extras.
Rating: 4/5
BitDefender Total Security 2011
Price: £50 (one PC)
Info: www.bitdefender.com
BitDefender Total Security is another very solid product, with no particular specialities that push it above the herd, but no major weaknesses either. It caught all the malware, it didn't fall for any traps, and it did it very effectively indeed, with quick scans and reasonable CPU and memory loads.
It has a dedicated gaming mode for keeping resources under control, and is one of the few products that does a proper scan of your PC before even installing, just to make sure it's safe.
The interface is somewhat unusual, initially looking like there aren't many features, before revealing that they're tucked away to help prioritise the ones that you actually use. Don't need laptop mode? Flick a switch and it'll never be shown again. Not a gamer? Say goodbye to the gaming mode.
Alternatively, if you want everything up front, you can just as easily switch into a more advanced user mode mode with all the options. One excellent touch is that before you use the software, it offers to actually guide you through, with one tutorial for existing BitDefender users and another for complete newcomers.
In terms of features, it's the standard loadout: firewall, parental controls, and a few extras for tuning up your PC and backing up files. The slightly cut down Internet Security 2011 edition loses the last couple of features, which is fine if you already have space to store your things, and costs slightly less.
There's also a pure antivirus edition, which is one of the cheaper on the market. This misses out on the firewall and parental controls, but otherwise still offers everything you could need to stop malware in its tracks.
Rating: 3/5
Titanium Internet Security 2011
Price: £40 (one PC)
Info: http://uk.trendmicro.com
Trend Micro's offering was by far the worst at picking up viruses in this year's test, failing to fix a dismal 23 per cent of the viruses planted on our test PC compared to most of the others' 100 per cent scores and Webroot's only slightly shaky 97.1.
In its favour, it didn't throw up any false positives, but nor did any of the other tools. We might just have caught it on a bad day, but we can't say it was a great start for this package. It's a cloud-based virus scanner however, so new emerging threats should be protected against very quickly.
In terms of raw performance, there's little to praise except for the fact that boot-up time after installing Trend was almost identical to before it, with a variance of just six seconds – the only other package even close to that was Microsoft itself, at 10 seconds.
In scanning, it used fewer resources than most, but not dramatically so. It took over 10 minutes to complete its secondary scan, where most – although not all – of its competitors ripped right through our test rig. Still, it wasn't the slowest performer by any means, beating both VIPRE and Microsoft by a good couple of minutes.
As far as extra features go, you get the standard firewall, a client-side spam blocker, plus some very handy extras: built in parental controls that both block kids from naughty sites and serve up reports, and a Data Theft Prevention tool that takes in your most important passwords and personal details and watches out for them slipping into the wrong hands.
All good stuff, let down by its initial performance. Hopefully next year it'll be better prepared.
Rating: 2/5
Best antivirus: verdict
The most surprising thing about this antivirus test is how little difference there is between most security suites at the moment. If you buy antivirus, you'll get that. Anything with 'Security' in the name is going to double that up with a firewall.All are incredibly easy to use, and the majority scored a clean sweep in our tests. That makes it harder to recommend individual packages, but the good news is that as long as you stick with the known names, you're unlikely to buy a dud.
Whether it's a bonus feature you like, or simply added performance you crave, you can purchase in confidence. Just make sure you invest in one of them, because the criminals writing viruses will always have another trick up their sleeves…
Editor's choice: Norton Internet Security 2011
It's a close fight, but Norton's excellent performance and revamped interface make it our pick of this year's crop. It's easy enough for anyone to use, but with lots of excellent bonus features to dip into if you need a bit more power.
Unsurprisingly catching everything we threw at it, it's a security suite you can be completely comfortable using as your digital guard-dog.
Performance award: Kaspersky Pure
With excellent scanning and a grab bag of genuinely useful security extras, it's hard to fault Kaspersky's high-end suite. You can get slightly faster and more system-friendly tools if you want everything more automated, although Pure won't give you trouble, but this is the one to go with if you want to squeeze as much power out of your choice of protection as possible.
Value award: Microsoft Security Essentials
You can't get better value than free, and Microsoft Security Essentials is more than good enough - as long as you know what you're doing. You may miss a few of the extra features, and have to sort out your firewall separately, but it'll keep you safe from most of the threats you're likely to download without the obnoxious extras. No licenses, no adverts, just free protection.
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Buying Guide: Best anti-virus: 10 programs on test
Malware, hackers, spam, identity thieves and more – which anti-virus package should you invest in to prevent them playing havoc with your life? We test 10 of the best anti-virus apps availableAnti-virus isn't something you can get away without any more, and if you think you can't be infected, chances are there's a virus writer somewhere ready and willing to prove you wrong. You probably won't even know about it when it happens.
In the old days, malware tended to make a big song and dance about its presence, but the rules have changed. Now written with an eye towards online crime and cold hard cash, the average virus has learned to stay low and spread via almost any vector. The wrong website. A lost USB stick. A Facebook message.
You never know where they could strike, and even if you're up to speed on what they're doing now, sooner or later they'll find a new trick.
For these anti-virus reviews, we've taken 10 of the best programs around and put them through their paces, not just to see how good they are at stomping viruses, but how much of your valuable resources they soak up.
We've all banished an anti-virus tool for slowing things down or getting too obnoxious at some point – a modern tool should be expected to keep quiet until it has something important to say, and definitely not get in the way of the applications you're using or the games you want to play.
Finally, while most of these versions are available as suites, it's primarily their anti-virus capabilities that we're looking at here. Each offers multiple versions at different price points, typically a pure antivirus tool and an Internet Security Suite edition that bolts on a firewall and often parental controls.
There's frequently a third edition too, focusing on features like backup and data security. The core engines are always the same, however, so don't feel you're missing out on anything if you don't need them.
Microsoft Security Essentials
Price: Free (Unlimited PCs)
Info: www.microsoft.com
You need antivirus, but do you need to pay for antivirus? There are plenty of free tools out there to choose from, including variants of many packages reviewed here (although we're looking at the commercial editions in the interests of fairness, the actual scanning engines are usually similar, if not identical), but Microsoft's is one of the few that's entirely free.
There are no upgrades on offer, no souped-up edition to try and upsell you to, and no irritating pop-ups to remind you that it's there. This makes it something of a stripped-down package – there's no firewall, not many options, no web filtering and no gaming mode.
It has all the basics though, including scheduled scans and real-time threat detection, the ability to mark certain files as safe and automatic scanning of all files you download from the internet.
On our test PC, it was by far the slowest antivirus package, taking 25 minutes for its first scan and 12 on a subsequent run, but clawed some time back when it came to reboots, barely affecting how long it took Windows to start up in the morning. It also had one of the lowest CPU utilisation scores on test, making it a good one to have running in the background.
As far as actual scanning goes, we had no complaints. Like most of the tools on test, it was a clean sweep, picking up all the malware on the PC and not falling for any of the false positives. It may be a free tool, but Microsoft has a vested interest in keeping Windows virus-free.
If all you want is a scanner and not any fancy features, it's more than up to the job of sitting in the background and protecting your PC, out of sight and out of mind.
Rating: 4/5
Webroot Internet Security Complete
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.webroot.com
Webroot performed reasonably well across the board. It missed one virus from our loadout, but that's only noticeable because the majority caught them all. Every package will have its blind spots – viruses that it didn't quite update in time to catch and the one that gets away – so a single miss is nothing to be ashamed of.
It earned a perfect score on false positives however, and proved one of the least system-intensive programs of the lot – it adds barely 20 seconds extra on bootup, has a tiny average memory footprint, and a very respectable scan time and average CPU load.
It was one of the slower programs in the test during the initial scan, but the time drops considerably on subsequent checks. There's a dedicated gaming mode, with the handy option to choose how long it stays on. Beyond that, there aren't many options to play with, and not much stood out.
The Internet Security Complete Pack takes the standard set of antivirus and firewall features and bolts on some handy extras, including protecting your passwords, providing secure form-filling and hanging onto your credit card details.
You also get some free web space, the amount depending on the version – 10GB in the Complete Edition, 2GB in Security Essentials – for file-sharing and backup, which is a handy throw-in, especially because it allows for automatic syncing. Put any files you need to keep into a special Magic Briefcase folder, and they'll be accessible on any PC that has Internet Security Complete on it.
This should really be a free downloadable app though to beat DropBox and friends.
Rating: 3/5
McAfee Internet Security 2011
Price: £40 (one PC)
Info: www.mcafee.com
The antivirus world's other heavy hitter doesn't put in quite as good a performance as this year's Norton, but still serves up a very respectable performance across the board.
It suffered from the one of the longest boot-up times and the absolute highest CPU load during scans, but compensated by being by far the least memory-hungry program on test. You might not want to play games while it's running – and there's no gaming mode provided – but for most apps it'll be just fine.
In other areas, Internet Security proved a mid-level package. Its initial scan took a lengthy 17 minutes, which dropped down to just four minutes on a subsequent runthrough – roughly the same as Norton.
It caught 100 per cent of the malware on our test system without falling prey to any false positives, and on a purely aesthetic level, it features a much better interface that makes it easy to access exactly the features you want.
As with all major internet security suites, a capable software firewall is built in, and can be activated and then generally ignored until it spots something you should know about.
Bonus features on offer here include parental controls, file shredding, antispam and a gigabyte of free space (the Norton equivalent is only available in the 360 edition).
The upgraded version, Total Protection, offers all these features, plus an encrypted vault to store files, home network defense and a more advanced version of McAfee's SiteAdvisor for spotting bad links. For most however, Internet Security will be all you need, and while it may not have come out the winner this year, it remains a strong performer.
AVG Internet Security 2011
Price: £38 (one PC)
Info: www.avg.com
AVG is best known for its free antivirus, but this commercial version offers more than a few reasons to upgrade, including identity protection and a built-in firewall.
Still, install it and you could be forgiven for thinking it's still trying to upsell you on a later version, because it's more than a little eager to make sure you know everything it's doing. It adds a Gadget to the Windows Sidebar, its firewall is very noticeable, and it can feel like the smart kid at the front of the class going "Sir! Sir! I know, sir!"
Still, it performs well enough for a pat on the head. In tests, it was easily the fastest of the tools here on first scan, and an excellent performer on subsequent scans. It demands fairly high CPU usage, but barely affected rebooting times at all.
On the all-important virus test, it was a clean sweep for both actual malware and false-positives. The only real weaknesses are the Link Scanner, which protects you from malicious sites and sending out dodgy links via Facebook, but only in internet Explorer and Firefox, and it's not always clear exactly what its options will do for you – the Identity Protection component being particularly vague.
AVG is a strong contender, although for personal use, it must be noted that if it's only the antivirus side of the package that you're interested in, you can still download it for free. (For professional/corporate use, you need to pay up for the full package.)
The main things you miss out on if you opt for the free version are the firewall, anti-spam (which you probably won't use since it's clientside only), IM conversation scanning, and the Identity Protection component.
Rating: 4/5
Norton Internet Security 2011
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.symantec.com
Like McAfee, Norton is one of the kings of the antivirus world and this latest version of its Internet Security suite doesn't let the side down at all.
Where previous versions could be annoyingly 'in your face', the 2011 suite feels more quietly confident, from its new interface showing current trouble hotspots around the world to the easy-to-use tools it provides for scanning and cleaning.
In tests, Norton's antivirus put on one of the best performances. It had no difficulty with the viruses we sent it to find and didn't fall for any of the false positives we set up for it. Norton has long had a reputation for being a heavy package, but this time out, it's a good lodger.
A very long initial scan soon gave way to one of the fastest second scans, with a solid CPU and memory footprint.
Bonus features on top of the core antivirus scanning in the Internet Security 2011 edition include parental controls, firewalling and tools for identity theft protection. The next level up, Norton 360, adds online backup/PC tuning, although nothing extra that you really need for online security.
One complaint we do have, however, is that while Symantec offers a 30-day trial of Norton products, there's a bit of a catch – they're what the company calls 'opt-out demos'. In short, you have to give it your credit card number and if you don't actively cancel before the end of your trial period, you'll automatically be billed for a whole year's worth of protection.
Hopefully this doesn't catch on with other companies, because it's not the friendliest way of road-testing alternative suites.
Rating: 4/5
VIPRE Antivirus Premium
Price: £50 (unlimited PCs)
Info: www.vipre.com
VIPRE offers a few interesting features, one of which is its 'lifetime' subscription option. Unfortunately this costs £60, and isn't a great deal considering the all-home licence you get in the regular edition. Also, the 'lifetime' is that of your PC, not yourself.
Since you're going to upgrade and almost certainly have more than one machine around, in most cases you're going to be better off with the regular yearly subscription, spread out between your computers.
In tests, it proved to be a mid-range performer. It was one of the worst tools for slowing down boot-times, although not quite the slowest, and one of the slowest at actually scanning the drive after its first look around. Its CPU utilisation is reasonable though, and while there's no dedicated gaming mode, it never got in the way of actually playing games.
It may take time to do its job, but you probably won't be inconvenienced while it does it in the background. Its performance against our test system was a clean sweep, catching all of the viruses put in front of it, and not falling for any of the false positives hiding among them.
In testing, no major problems reared their heads at all, save that it can be very chatty – always keeping you in the loop, whether you have a reason to care or not.
VIPRE Antivirus is available in two versions – Premium and regular. The main differences are that only the Premium edition features a firewall and intrusion prevention, with a few other features thrown in – notably ad blocking, web filtering. The antivirus component itself appear to be the same decent performer.
Rating: 3/5
PC Tools Internet Security 2011
Price: £50 (three PCs)
Info: www.pctools.com
The first thing that stood out about PC Tools was that it had by far the biggest effect on our test machine's boot times, increasing them by a good half a minute. In three different tests, it spiked a 38-second boot time to a whopping 2:10, 1:49 and 1:40 – quite a difference.
Luckily, that was the only major negative we encountered while using it. Its memory usage and CPU load were average, and its actual scanning was surprisingly fast. The first long initial scan took around half an hour, but dropped down to a mere 46 seconds for its follow-up run.
As with most tools here, it caught everything that was waiting for it on the drive, and didn't clock up any false positives against its record while doing so.
Its feature set is a strong one, with one of the more reactive firewalls we saw in these products immediately kicking in. Unlike many, there are a few handy shortcuts you can use, including telling it what kind of network you're on, and having the firewall settings auto-configured to match – very handy if you just want to get started.
In a similar vein, a gaming mode is both present and automated, kicking in whenever you go into full-screen mode. Additional web security filters include spam filtering for Outlook and Thunderbird via toolbars, and plenty of online protection tools to watch out for any potentially dodgy websites and dangerous downloads.
It's one of the cheaper antivirus solutions out there as well, at only £40 for a three-user license per year. It's a pity about that initial sloth, but there's little to complain about elsewhere in this strong internet security suite.
Rating: 3/5
Kaspersky Pure
Price: £50 (one PC)
Info: www.kaspersky.com
Kaspersky currently offers three different security products, in escalating level of price: regular Kaspersky Antivirus, Kaspersky Internet Security and this one, Kaspersky Pure. Both Antivirus and Pure are excellent performers, and caught all the malware in our test sweep without falling prey to any traps.
The regular Antivirus proved marginally faster, while soaking up equally marginal extra system resources, and is a little cheaper, but Pure offers a few extra toys to play with. Whichever version you look at, it's going to be an excellent product.
Internet Security bolts on extra parental controls and tune-up utilities. Pure adds backup to the mix and beefs up the firewall component, with more emphasis on the security of your home network. The most interesting feature Kaspersky Internet Security/ Pure includes is the ability to run applications in a sandbox, without you having to go to the trouble of setting up dedicated virtual machines.
Any app you have installed can be locked away in one, identified by a radioactive green glow around its window. A shared folder handles any data-swapping. You still shouldn't use this to test programs you know are dodgy – or run them at all – but it's a good extra to have when browsing the web or trying out new applications.
Kaspersky's protection is a strong offering across the board, with a more informative control panel than most, but one that provides easy configuration options. It's a little more power for only small amount extra, but you won't be disappointed with the other editions if you don't need the extras.
Rating: 4/5
BitDefender Total Security 2011
Price: £50 (one PC)
Info: www.bitdefender.com
BitDefender Total Security is another very solid product, with no particular specialities that push it above the herd, but no major weaknesses either. It caught all the malware, it didn't fall for any traps, and it did it very effectively indeed, with quick scans and reasonable CPU and memory loads.
It has a dedicated gaming mode for keeping resources under control, and is one of the few products that does a proper scan of your PC before even installing, just to make sure it's safe.
The interface is somewhat unusual, initially looking like there aren't many features, before revealing that they're tucked away to help prioritise the ones that you actually use. Don't need laptop mode? Flick a switch and it'll never be shown again. Not a gamer? Say goodbye to the gaming mode.
Alternatively, if you want everything up front, you can just as easily switch into a more advanced user mode mode with all the options. One excellent touch is that before you use the software, it offers to actually guide you through, with one tutorial for existing BitDefender users and another for complete newcomers.
In terms of features, it's the standard loadout: firewall, parental controls, and a few extras for tuning up your PC and backing up files. The slightly cut down Internet Security 2011 edition loses the last couple of features, which is fine if you already have space to store your things, and costs slightly less.
There's also a pure antivirus edition, which is one of the cheaper on the market. This misses out on the firewall and parental controls, but otherwise still offers everything you could need to stop malware in its tracks.
Rating: 3/5
Titanium Internet Security 2011
Price: £40 (one PC)
Info: http://uk.trendmicro.com
Trend Micro's offering was by far the worst at picking up viruses in this year's test, failing to fix a dismal 23 per cent of the viruses planted on our test PC compared to most of the others' 100 per cent scores and Webroot's only slightly shaky 97.1.
In its favour, it didn't throw up any false positives, but nor did any of the other tools. We might just have caught it on a bad day, but we can't say it was a great start for this package. It's a cloud-based virus scanner however, so new emerging threats should be protected against very quickly.
In terms of raw performance, there's little to praise except for the fact that boot-up time after installing Trend was almost identical to before it, with a variance of just six seconds – the only other package even close to that was Microsoft itself, at 10 seconds.
In scanning, it used fewer resources than most, but not dramatically so. It took over 10 minutes to complete its secondary scan, where most – although not all – of its competitors ripped right through our test rig. Still, it wasn't the slowest performer by any means, beating both VIPRE and Microsoft by a good couple of minutes.
As far as extra features go, you get the standard firewall, a client-side spam blocker, plus some very handy extras: built in parental controls that both block kids from naughty sites and serve up reports, and a Data Theft Prevention tool that takes in your most important passwords and personal details and watches out for them slipping into the wrong hands.
All good stuff, let down by its initial performance. Hopefully next year it'll be better prepared.
Rating: 2/5
Best anti-virus: verdict
The most surprising thing about this anti-virus test is how little difference there is between most security suites at the moment. If you buy antivirus, you'll get that. Anything with 'Security' in the name is going to double that up with a firewall.All are incredibly easy to use, and the majority scored a clean sweep in our tests. That makes it harder to recommend individual packages, but the good news is that as long as you stick with the known names, you're unlikely to buy a dud.
Whether it's a bonus feature you like, or simply added performance you crave, you can purchase in confidence. Just make sure you invest in one of them, because the criminals writing viruses will always have another trick up their sleeves…
Editor's choice: Norton Internet Security 2011
It's a close fight, but Norton's excellent performance and revamped interface make it our pick of this year's crop. It's easy enough for anyone to use, but with lots of excellent bonus features to dip into if you need a bit more power.
Unsurprisingly catching everything we threw at it, it's a security suite you can be completely comfortable using as your digital guard-dog.
Performance award: Kaspersky Pure
With excellent scanning and a grab bag of genuinely useful security extras, it's hard to fault Kaspersky's high-end suite. You can get slightly faster and more system-friendly tools if you want everything more automated, although Pure won't give you trouble, but this is the one to go with if you want to squeeze as much power out of your choice of protection as possible.
Value award: Microsoft Security Essentials
You can't get better value than free, and Microsoft Security Essentials is more than good enough - as long as you know what you're doing. You may miss a few of the extra features, and have to sort out your firewall separately, but it'll keep you safe from most of the threats you're likely to download without the obnoxious extras. No licenses, no adverts, just free protection.
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Sony Ericsson Xperia Play gets MWC confirmation
Sony Ericsson has finally officially outed its Xperia Play PSP phone in an advert aired during the Superbowl in the USA. We can look forward to a Mobile World Congress launch of the long-rumoured handset; the official announcement will be on 13 February at 6pm GMT, the same time as its Barcelona press conference.
It comes as no surprise, given that TechRadar has already spent some hands on time with the Xperia Play and brought you a shortened version of the advert played during the Superbowl yesterday.
Android is ready to play
The advert features the same backstreet thumb-grafting that made us feel vaguely ill last week, but the longer version sees the post-op Android get out and about.
There's still no word on exactly which games will be available to play on the handset at launch aside from the upgraded PSOne titles we'd already noted.
We're also sadly lacking in a UK release date or UK pricing of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play – we suppose they do need to save some news for the press conference though. Rest assured we'll be there to bring you all the juicy details.
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Review: Toshiba Satellite R630-141
While Toshiba's Satellite range comprises its consumer laptops, the Satellite R630-141 (£764 inc. VAT) takes its design entirely from Toshiba's corporate Portégé R700 line. Offering high-powered mobility, it is an absolutely fantastic choice for the frequent traveller.Weighing just 1.4kg, this 13.3-inch this laptop is one of the smallest and lightest machines in this category. The sleek chassis is eminently portable and easy to carry during the day, while the 398-minute battery life vastly beats its rivals here to keep you working for nearly seven hours.
Finished in brushed magnesium alloy, the chassis combines black and gun-metal colour schemes that add an eye-catching yet understated look. The tough plastics prove suitably resilient to scratches and general damage, although we found they quickly attract smudges.
Despite its small dimensions, a large and comfortable isolation-style keyboard is in place. The keys move smoothly and quietly, making long-term use comfortable.
Although the 13.3-inch screen is the smallest in this group, it uses the same resolution as the larger Asus U53Jc Bamboo and HP Envy 14 to deliver a very detailed image. The bright panel provides strong colour and contrast and even the glossy Super-TFT coating hides reflections surprisingly well.
Impressively for such a small laptop, the Toshiba uses the same Intel Core i5 processor as the huge Sony Vaio VPCEC3S0E/WI in this group test. Even more impressively, it manages to outperform the Asus U53Jc Bamboo, HP Envy 14 and the Sony Vaio VPCEC3S0E/WI, speeding through our benchmark tests with unexpected speed and ease.
Graphics are inevitably less powerful, but remain capable enough for basic use. Due to the confines of the small chassis, an integrated Intel graphics card is in place, and it delivers enough power to run high-definition (HD) video and even allow a bit of light media-editing work.
DVD rewriter
Unusually for such a small laptop at this comparatively low price, an integrated DVD rewriter has been fitted for creating your own discs as you travel. Complimenting the suitably capacious 320GB hard drive, it provides the laptop with ample storage capabilities for a busy life on the move.
Adding final value to this machine is its software package. While there is no office software included, you get market-leading tools for internet security, data backup and disc creation, among others.
While the Satellite R630-141 is beaten by the stronger specification and graphics of the Asus U53Jc Bamboo and Sony Vaio VPCEC3S0E/WI, this is still one of the best ultra-portables you can buy. Offering stunning power and mobility at a fairly low price, we would be more than happy to have one in our bag next time we hit the road.
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Review: Samsung HT-C6930
On paper the HT-C6930 is an impressive box of tricks, but is it over-specified?
It boasts Blu-ray (including 3D), 7.1 speakers, internet video, multimedia playback and home networking amongst its numerous credentials.
Of course, to use the 3D facility you need a 3DTV. And what do most 3D flat screens (and certainly all of Samsung's) already have? Internet video, multimedia playback and home networking...
Feature overkill or not, the system certainly has panache. The main unit is crafted from high-grade black, gloss plastic, sporting a backlit 3D logo and an illuminated disc tray.
With their sturdy cabinets and components, the speakers have a superior, almost dedicated audio brand-like quality to them. The front left and rights can be wall or stand-mounted, in tall-boy fashion, while the wireless kit lets you place the surround back speakers behind the listening position.
The two other surround speakers, however, are hard-wired so any thoughts of a cable-free paradise are short lived. Connections are light but effective, with built-in Wi-Fi and dual HDMI inputs, which is good news for routing kit such as a games console or digibox to a TV.
Aided by colour-coded speaker terminals and a granny-proof set-up wizard, installation is straightforward. Sound setup is easy, too: using the supplied microphone and a hideous orchestral cacophony emitted by the speakers, the system's auto calibrator detects cabinet distances and sets its levels and frequencies accordingly.
As a network media device the HT-C6930 works nicely, and the methodical instructions manual does an excellent job of taking the pain out of configuring a network. As per the whole system, the interface is a pleasure to use.
The three Cs
This system serves up some fantastic images, especially with 2D sources such as Avatar on Blu-ray. The HT-C6930 is a master of the three Cs – clarity, colour and contrast. Detail levels are quite stunning; every fibre of Sully's T-shirt and bristle of his beard are clearly visible on a Samsung UE46C8000 3D screen.
With the HT-C6930 as the source, the screen of a same-brand 3D TV can automatically switch to its full HD 3D display mode. A message then prompts you to don the 3D goggles and switch them on. This is certainly no slouch as a 3D deck, retaining clarity and brightness with the Monsters Vs Aliens movie.
Crosstalk is an issue, but how much so depends largely on which screen you're using.
Sonically, this system delivers its most impressive surprise; the speakers mesh together exquisitely to deliver a finely controlled soundscape. Even at high volumes distortion remains a totally alien concept as vocals, effects and musical score blend perfectly. In its sector, this is without doubt a class-leading product
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Review: ViewSonic Pro8200
The latest entrant in the increasingly crowded budget 1080p projector market, the ViewSonic Pro8200 has an impressive resumé.At a tidy 3.63kg, this diminutive 2,000 lumens light cannon bristles with connection options, sports TI's BrilliantColor picture technology and utilises a freshly minted 0.66in Digital Mirror Device for ultra-spiky detail.
The vented sides that drag air across the light engine may give the Pro8200 a little bit of a 'fan heater' aesthetic, but overall it's a rather nice looking and well-built projector.
Connectivity is generous.
Crammed on to the back panel are two HDMI inputs, one component input, S-video and phono inputs, a pair of PC connections and a 12V trigger to integrate the projector with an electric screen. There is also a monitor output from the unit and a USB input, although the latter is for firmware updating and does not allow media playback.
For users who may wish to plonk the lightbox on a coffee table for occasional use, a trio of feet allow easy tabletop alignment, while auto/manual keystone correction (giving +/– 20 degrees of adjustment) is on hand to keep things on the straight and narrow.
Gamers' delight
ViewSonic says the model, which has a 16:9 native aspect ratio, is aimed at both movie fans and console gamers. Given that the projector throws out enough light to be used in a partially lit room, it's easy to imagine the Pro8200 as the centrepiece of a frag party, and I must admit that running Call Of Duty: Black Ops through it was enormously engaging.
When it comes to home theatre usage, it should be noted that this is not a particularly inconspicuous projector.
The fan and spinning colour wheel throw out 31dB. You can curtail this noise by running the projector in its Dark Room (cinema) mode and/ or selecting the Eco setting. This drops operational noise down to 27dB. The latter also helps extend lamp life, typically to 6,000 hours.
With a fringe on top
Straight out of the box, it's apparent that the default black level setting of the Pro8200 is too light. It doesn't take long to work out why. Using a 20/20 step B&W scale, I tweaked the gamma to give a deeper, more contrasty image, which immediately brought that old DLP chestnut, rainbow effect, to the fore.
Colour fringing remains an issue with single-chip DLP, despite advances in wheel technology. To confirm this I called on my chum Buster Keaton. His 1922 comedy The Frozen North is awash with the sort of contrasty black and white that provides perfect fringe-testing fodder.
If you are sensitive to DLP's colour rainbows, you can always run gamma low to minimise them (although blacks are rendered a mid-grey).
Video processing comes via Pixelworks PW980 silicon, which offers 10-bit colour and motion adaptive de-interlacing. With no shortage of picture tweaks available, it's really not too difficult to get a good image.
Colour fidelity is excellent and I found the reds were particularly convincing.
There are, unfortunately, serious problems with motion resolution and image panning. A horizontally scrolling monoscope pattern confirms that subjective resolution drops from around 1080 lines, when stationary, to a smudgy 600-700 lines when travelling.
Even worse, our Pro8200 sample performed a curious little jump/skip as the image panned. This hiccup proved constant and consistent.
When I examined test patterns, the effect was all too obvious, although within general video hubbub it's less easy to spot, but it's still there.
Nice for the price
Overall I'd rate this as a nice enough budget 1080p projector, given the ticket price. However, despite its many plus points the package is undermined by poor motion resolution, and that panning 'skip' is definitely irritating.
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White Google Nexus S confirmed for UK launch
Vodafone has confirmed to TechRadar that it will be stocking the white Nexus S when it launches in the next few months.Vodafone is the first network to range the Google Nexus S after it launched with The Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy at the tail end of last year and it appears its patience has been rewarded with an exclusive colour.
The launch of a premium smartphone in another colour is another snook cocked to Apple, with the Cupertino brand still failing to launch a white iPhone 4 nearly 9 months after it was announced.
We hope it'll be all-white
We're hoping that the white Nexus S isn't going to look the same way it did in early leaked pictures, where it simply had an off-white battery cover and the same black front.
However, it should come in at the same price range as its noir brother when it lands, likely around £30 per month on a two year deal.
Vodafone couldn't give us an exact UK release date for the white Nexus S, but given the slew of releases coming soon from Mobile World Congress 2011, we'd imagine it would be pushing to have this little white nugget out by the end of Q1 at the latest.
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Google Nexus S launching on Vodafone
Vodafone has announced that the Google Nexus S, the first handset to run Android 2.3, will be landing on its network.The phone was launched in the UK at the end of 2010, but was only available through Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy.
However, it will now be stocked on one of the UK's largest networks, giving the second Google-phone a wider range of exposure to more customers.
We need details
We don't have a UK release date or price yet, but thankfully a Vodafone spokesperson confirmed to TechRadar that the Nexus S will be coming to the UK – we're always slightly worried when we get a global release that doesn't specifically mention the UK.
It's likely the new phone won't be the most expensive in the red network's range either, probably landing at £30 a month on a two year deal if Carphone Warehouse's price is any kind of guide.
As you will have seen in our Google Nexus S review, the handset is crammed full of next-gen tech (Super AMOLED curved 4-inch screen, NFC contactless technology) and the 'pure' Android experience, so hopefully Vodafone won't have to delay when it comes to pushing out updates for this handset.
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Competition: WIN! An LG HX300G LED projector
Ever wished you had your own home multimedia room? With the LG HX300G LED projector, you can view cinema-quality multimedia content including movies, sporting events, MP3s, home videos and pictures at up to 1.35 metres wide within the comfort of your own home.The ultra-slim, micro portable HX300G from LG is the world's first XGA LED projector and delivers a colour range so wide and picture quality so sharp and bright, you will forget you're not in a cinema!
The HX300G supports DivX HD, MP3 and JPEG files and File Viewer software, so it's multi- functional and easy to connect through a USB. Whether you're at home, at work or on the move, the lightweight HX300G offers a superior picture and colour quality, wherever you go.
To celebrate the launch of its innovative projector range, leading consumer electronics manufacturer, LG, is giving away one of these stylish, ultra slim, go-anywhere HX300G projectors.
To be in with a chance of winning one of these eight prizes, visit our competition page.
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Please note that this competition is only open to UK residents over 18 years of age.
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Canon invites the IXUS 115, 220 and 310 HS to its digicam party
Canon has revealed a new pack of compact cameras have joined its IXUS line-up, offering Full HD shooting, low-light capabilities and a smattering of style.The Canon IXUS 115 HS is the baby of the group. It is available in four colours and can record Full HD 1080p movies.
There's 32 different scene modes on board and it has been given a 28mm wide-angle, 4x optical zoom Canon lens with optical image stabiliser.
This is coupled with a 12.1MP CMOS sensor, 3-inch PureColor II G LCD and High-speed Burst and Super Slow Motion Movie capture modes.
For those who like a gimmick, there is also a Miniature and Toy Camera mode on the camera.
The Canon IXUS 115 HS has a UK release date of February 2011, and is priced at £179.
IXUS 220 HS
Canon has also announced the arrival of the Canon IXUS 220 HS. This camera features for the more abled camera person, offering a back-illuminated CMOS sensor, DIGIC 4 processing and a ultra-wide angle 24mm lens with 5x optical zoom.
The IXUS 220 HS is the smallest Canon camera to offer Full HD shooting and can capture footage at 24fps.
Like its 115 HD bedfellow, the IXUS 220 HS also has a 12.1MP CMOS sensor, a slightly smaller viewfinder at 2.7 inches and High-speed Burst and Super Slow Motion Movie movies.
For those who want to make a scene, there are 32 on offer here and you also get a Movie Digest mode, which takes your video clips and makes a montage out of them.
The Canon IXUS 220 HS has a UK release date of mid February and is priced at £199.
IXUS 310 HS
The Canon IXUS 310 HS is the premium model of the range, bringing the same 12.1MP CMOS sensor, with DIGIC 4 processing, but with the addition of a stainless steal body, and a f2.0, 24mm, 4.4x zoom lens with optical IS.
The viewfinder is also bigger at 3.2 inches and you can shoot Full HD with optical zoom.
You also have the usual 32 scene modes to play around with, as well as High-speed Burst and Super Slow Motion Movie modes.
And there's also more manual control given to the IXUS 310 HS.
The Canon IXUS 310 HS has a UK release date of March 2011 and is priced at £299.
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Canon invites the IXUS 115, 220 and 310 HS to its digicam party
Canon has revealed a new pack of compact cameras have joined its IXUS line-up, offering Full HD shooting, low-light capabilities and a smattering of style.The Canon IXUS 115 HS is the baby of the group. It is available in four colours and can record Full HD 1080p movies.
There's 32 different scene modes on board and it has been given a 28mm wide-angle, 4x optical zoom Canon lens with optical image stabiliser.
This is coupled with a 12.1MP CMOS sensor, 3-inch PureColor II G LCD and High-speed Burst and Super Slow Motion Movie capture modes.
For those who like a gimmick, there is also a Miniature and Toy Camera mode on the camera.
The Canon IXUS 115 HS has a UK release date of February 2011, and is priced at £179.
IXUS 220 HS
Canon has also announced the arrival of the Canon IXUS 220 HS. This camera features for the more abled camera person, offering a back-illuminated CMOS sensor, DIGIC 4 processing and a ultra-wide angle 24mm lens with 5x optical zoom.
The IXUS 220 HS is the smallest Canon camera to offer Full HD shooting and can capture footage at 24fps.
Like its 115 HD bedfellow, the IXUS 220 HS also has a 12.1MP CMOS sensor, a slightly smaller viewfinder at 2.7 inches and High-speed Burst and Super Slow Motion Movie movies.
For those who want to make a scene, there are 32 on offer here and you also get a Movie Digest mode, which takes your video clips and makes a montage out of them.
The Canon IXUS 220 HS has a UK release date of mid February and is priced at £199.
IXUS 310 HS
The Canon IXUS 310 HS is the premium model of the range, bringing the same 12.1MP CMOS sensor, with DIGIC 4 processing, but with the addition of a stainless steal body, and a f2.0, 24mm, 4.4x zoom lens with optical IS.
The viewfinder is also bigger at 3.2 inches and you can shoot Full HD with optical zoom.
You also have the usual 32 scene modes to play around with, as well as High-speed Burst and Super Slow Motion Movie modes.
And there's also more manual control given to the IXUS 310 HS.
The Canon IXUS 310 HS has a UK release date of March 2011 and is priced at £299.
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Canon PowerShot SX230 HS and SX220 HS announced
In what is a busy day of Canon releases, the camera company has announced two new cameras for its PowerShot range, the Canon PowerShot SX230 HS and PowerShot SX220 HS.The Canon PowerShot SX230 HS comes brandishing a 12.1MP sensor, 28mm lens with 14x zoom and optical IS, and a 3.0-inch PureColor II G LCD.
There's also the ability to film Full HD footage, 32 scene modes to choose from and High-speed Burst and Super Slow Motion Movie modes to play around with.
This is all topped off with GPS functionality.
PowerShot SX220
The Canon PowerShot SX220 also brings a 12.1MP sensor to the table, along with 28mm, 14x zoom lens and Full HD shooting.
There is also a 3.0-inch PureColor II G LCD on board, as well as Movie Digest and iFrame movie modes.
You also get access to 32 scene modes but there is no GPS on the SX220.
The Canon PowerShot SX230 HS and Canon PowerShot SX220 HS have a UK release date of mid-March 2011, with pricing to be announced.
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Canon EOS 1100D budget DSLR revealed
Canon has unveiled the latest DSLR for its entry level range, the Canon EOS 1100D.Created as a DSLR for those who have never touched a DSLR before, the EOS 1100D offers a 12MP sensor, on-screen feature guide and 720p HD video capture.
The EOS 1100D has been given ISO 100-6400 sensitivity, as well as a wide-area 9-point AF system, 63-zone iFCL exposure metering and a 2.7-inch LCD.
Cheap price
There's an HDMI slot on board, so you can plug the camera straight into your TV and there's also the capability to do high-speed shooting at a passable three frames per second.
On-board is something called Eye-Fi Connected Functions, which means that if you plug in an Eye-Fi card you may be able to wirelessly transfer your images.
The Canon EOS 1100D is compatible with all EF and EF-S lenses and has a UK release date of April 2011. Price-wise, you can get the EOS 1100D body only for £419.
If you add an EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II, then it is a penny under £500. If you want the EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS III lens option then this will be £459.
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Canon EOS 600D DSLR announced
Canon has announced the arrival of its latest entry level DSLR, the Canon EOS 600D. Part of Canon's DSLR line-up the 660D is placed above the EOS 550D and the new EOS 1100D, and has an 18-megapixel CMOS sensor and Full HD EOS Movie mode.To help you with your shooting there is an on-screen feature guide and there's also a bunch of creative filters to enhance your images.
Automatic for the people
There's a new fully-automatic Scene Intelligent Auto mode, which takes the sting out of manual shooting, and the 600D also allows high-speed shooting at 3.7 frames per second. This is coupled with a 9-point autofocus system, an ISO range of 100-6400 and a 3-inch vari-angle LCD.
As it is part of Canon's EOS range, it is compatible with over 60 lenses and also Canon's speedlight range.
The Canon EOS 600D (body only) has a UK release date of April 2011 and is priced at £679. If you want to pair it with an EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS II lens then this will set you back £769.
If you want a more premium lens (the EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS) then you are looking at £949.
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